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Oct 2010 – Jan 2011

Journal

This edition of the Teaching Fellows Journal has been restored from an archived online edition, hence the simplified form.

Edinburgh Napier University is a registered Scottish charity. Reg. No. SC018373

ISSN 2050-9995 (Online)

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EditorialThe audience, reflection and feedback in communication

Professor John Duffield, Vice Principal (Academic), reflects on the components required for successful communication

When I was invited to write an editorial for this edition of the Teaching Fellows Journal (TFJ), I had been at Edinburgh Napier University for only three months. Immediately I was tempted to say ‘yes’ but wondered if it was too soon for me to engage in this aspect of University life without being seen as either presumptive or patronising. However, having attended and been greatly impressed by the Teaching Fellows Conference Learning to learn at university: enabling academic transitions for all our students at the end of June, I was already keen to connect with this area of Edinburgh Napier academic life. Furthermore, from a wider perspective, the current external economic landscape means that, while we must work more efficiently and effectively with less, we must not lose sight of our core values and the strategic driver of Academic Excellence in our Vision and Mission.

The themes of this issue ‘Dissemination and Communication’ are obviously fundamental to teaching, learning and assessment but in a wider sense underpin all that we, as human beings, do in pursuit of our individual and collective agendas. As such, there are intriguing and complex intersections/interactions between the communicator and the audiences with which s/he wishes to engage, with the potential for a whole minefield of misunderstandings. Further, in almost all communication/dissemination partnerships, there is a need to tell and, hopefully, to learn from the telling but in education we need to go a step further and find ways of assessing how what we have taught, researched and communicated has been received and understood by our students and colleagues.

There are now many ways by which we can communicate and disseminate knowledge and we as a University are at the forefront of examining and innovating in the use of new technologies to reach diverse audiences. However, whatever medium we use and whatever the idea we wish to communicate, we forget the audience(s) and the context at our peril. At best what we wish to say may be lost, at worst barriers are raised and dissonance occurs between the protagonists; sometimes this is because of hubris and at other times because the person/group being

Contents2 Editorial

4 Eureka!

5 Reports

8 Review corner

9 Web spotlight

Edition Editors

Angela BenziesSenior Teaching Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Academic Practice

Coordinator of the Teaching Fellowship Scheme

Margaret Nairntfj Web Editor and Publications Officer

At time of publication:Academic Development, Bevan Villa,Craighouse Campus, Edinburgh

Current enquiries to:Office of the Vice Principal (Academic)Sighthill Campus, Sighthill Court,Edinburgh EH11 4BN

Email: tfj@napier.ac.uk

http://www.url.napier.ac.uk/tf

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However, students are only one side of the equation and obviously staff need to know about it as well. Shortly after a message went out to academic staff to highlight the launch, quite heated feedback was received from some concerning inappropriate/poor use of grammar in the material disseminated and, as a result, some of the communication about the essence of the project and its aims was lost. As with my other example, there are a couple of learning points here:

• the importance of supplying to the staff audience more of the context underpinning the language used

• how communication may ‘miss the mark’ and the need for sender and receiver to be able to focus on the important issues within the message, rather than becoming distracted by the words.

I’m sure you have many similar examples.

In the context of communication, there is perhaps very little that is unambiguous or can be explained with absolute clarity because even audiences that seem homogeneous bring cultural values to their understanding of a subject. Hence for successful communication, reflection and feedback are vital components in ensuring that true learning has been achieved.

Level three of the University’s new Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy, the Resource Bank (to be launched January 2011), offers an exciting opportunity to share our LTA practice more widely and more easily and to disseminate outputs from university and Teaching Fellow work. In that way, it is hoped that outcomes from university-wide projects such as ‘How you doin’?’ and ‘Talking about feedback: investigating audio feedback at Edinburgh Napier’ will be more accessible, as will the reports and outputs from recent Teaching Fellow projects, some of which involve assessment choice and feedback. In addition, the recently formed Special Interest Groups (SIGs) within the Teaching Fellow community will be seeking to link people with interests in areas such as internationalisation, technology enhanced teaching and learning and the inclusive curriculum, and to develop our practice in these areas. As the Edinburgh Napier Academic Exchange becomes established, this will provide an electronic forum for academic debate and sharing of knowledge on a variety of LTA topics. The Teaching Fellow community will continue to be an important resource for supporting university initiatives such as ‘How you doin’?’, which is being led by a Senior Teaching Fellow, and in helping ensure that the key messages from our LTA work are communicated, understood and acted upon. •

communicated with is unaware of some aspect of the context underlying the communication.

I would like to use two (of many) examples from my own experience to illustrate such potential problems:

1. SNP – a few years ago, at the University of the West of England in Bristol, when I was still an active research chemist, I attended a research seminar given by a biomedical scientist who was researching the causes of cancer and cell death. Throughout, this colleague talked about ‘SNP’ and showed graphs of ‘Cell viability versus SNP concentration’. As a chemist, I spent the whole lecture trying to figure out what SNP was (S = sulphur; N = nitrogen; P = phosphorus) but I knew of no compound of that formula or elemental composition (and in Scotland my musings might have taken me in other directions!). After the seminar I found out that biomedical scientists and biologists used SNP as an abbreviation for sodium nitroprusside whose proper chemical name is sodium pentacyanonitrosylferrate(III).

As a chemist, I was affronted. How dare non-chemists hijack our nomenclature and disrespect naming conventions developed over decades? Undoubtedly an example of professional hubris on my part because, on reflection, I realised that none of this was relevant and, indeed, had no real relevance to researchers in the field being discussed at the seminar.

However, in my own defence, the lecturer had not defined terminology, had not considered the likelihood of an interdisciplinary audience and had, therefore, made some unwarranted assumptions. As questions were not welcome during the seminar and, because I was trying to decipher something unfamiliar, I missed out on understanding much of the thrust of the overall message.

2. ‘How you doin’?’ – this is a more recent example and relates to the launch of the university’s ‘Feedback for Learning’ campaign during Week 1 of this session. The project, developed in conjunction with Napier Students Association, is primarily designed to engage with our student body and help them understand what feedback is and how it is part of a holistic process involving an individual reflecting on his/her whole learning, teaching and assessment experience.

Here, the terminology developed, for example the project name, ‘How you doin’?’, ‘Talk feedback’, has been crafted partly through the use of focus groups to resonate with the significant majority of our students.

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Eureka!Seven painful truths about writing for publication

Daphne Loads, Academic Support Adviser, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Social Care, offers us tips for coping with rejection (and success!) when writing for publication. (With contributions from Sara Wasson, School of Arts and Creative Industries and Grahame Steven, School of Accounting, Economics & Statistics.)

1 You will be rejectedWhen you’ve finally come to terms with not being invited to Jamie Wilkinsop’s 5th birthday party and not being picked for either the football team or a slow dance at the High School Disco … it can be hard to discover there’s a whole new world of potential rejection out there in the form of academic journal editors.

Of course it’s not you personally that’s being rejected. It may be that your paper just doesn’t fit the remit of that particular journal. It’s worth checking this carefully in the ‘information for authors’ section of their website. Perhaps you’ve misjudged the style that is required. Sometimes you haven’t got your timing quite right. Your hot topic may have gone cold: use the search button to check if it has been covered in previous issues. You may be ahead of your time. I find this last explanation particularly comforting.

2 You won’t get paidThis one came as a bit of a shock to me.

3 You will be misunderstoodSome years ago now, the editor of Community Care, having read my incisive inquiry into the concept of age appropriateness in relation to people with learning difficulties, suggested I submit it to Cosmopolitan. My gas was, as they say, at a peep. I suppose at least with Cosmo I might have got a fee!

While sub-editors do a valuable job, they may not be experts in your field. Minor amendments that they

make for good reason (for example cutting the word count) can sometimes change the tone or emphasis of a key passage in an article. Always check what’s been done to your work!

Reviewers are not always right. Their opinions should be taken as a guide as to what to do – when they have a valid point! – to improve an article. Be strong and repel (with good reason) inappropriate ‘advice’.

4 Not many people will read your work‘Look! OMG! Isn’t she the woman who wrote that piece on Pedagogies of Puzzlement in Studies in Higher Education?’ It’s just not going to happen. If you want to reach a wide audience, go on YouTube. Many serious academic journals have a tiny circulation, and often your nearest and dearest won’t read your papers, even if you send them copies as Christmas presents.

5 It will take agesMost journals have a very slow process for both review and publication. It can take a year or more for a paper to see the light of day, by which time you may well have completely rethought your position on the topic.

6 It will be there for a very long time It’s good to leave something for posterity. But remember there is no delete button, and no way of saying ‘what I actually meant was...’

7 You will look like a sad individual…when someone catches you checking to see if anyone has cited you. (Nobody had. Still haven’t.)

However…there’s always the chance that your ideas and the way you express them will have a profound impact on one person who reads your paper. I don’t mean the kind of impact that can be calculated by making league tables of journals and counting citations. I’m thinking of those times when the light comes on or a shadow shifts and suddenly something makes sense. For me, that chance makes it all worth while. What do you think? •

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Reports Daphne Loads, Academic Support Adviser, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Social Care, reports on the Academic Identities for the 21st Century Conference

Allison Alexander, Lecturer, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Social Care reports on the International Health Humanities Conference

Janis Deane reports on a joint Teaching Fellows project Giving students choice in the method of assessment

Daphne Loads reports on the Academic Identities for the 21st Century Conference

I participated in the lively ‘Academic Identities’ conference held at the University of Strathclyde, 16–18 June. I was particularly struck by the keynote paper delivered by Sue Clegg of Leeds Metropolitan University. Sue made some provocative points:

• that it seems somehow transgressive to talk about kindness and care in academia

• that we are often working with a denuded notion of the academic role, with the caring stripped away: the resulting carelessness is harmful for us all

• far from being ‘soft and fluffy’, caring is often hard work and intellectually challenging

• we need to break down the dualism between affect and rationality, because the idea of an impersonal university is actually profoundly irrational…

What do you think? What implications do these ideas have for our work?

Even more unsettling was the presentation by Susan Crozier, University of the Arts, London. Starting from the premise that many of us work in apparently impossible situations, where there seems to be no hope of reconciling our values with our environment, she dared to suggest that there might be an alternative response to ‘cynicism, moral outrage [and] suspicion’. This alternative response calls for hope, poetry, love, inspiration and Bennett’s (2001) concept of enchantment – a sense of openness to surprise and wonder in everyday things. With these materials, could we imagine different identities for ourselves?

The next speaker, Paul Thompson, University of Strathcyde, provided what was for me the funniest moment of the conference when he deadpanned, ‘I don’t do fantasy – I’m a materialist’.

There was a good showing of Edinburgh Napier colleagues past and present. Professor Ray Land, now of the University of Strathclyde, took us ‘Venturing into strange places’, Professor John Cowan and colleagues looked at ‘Virtual relationships’, Ailsa Hollinshead had contributed to a presentation on ‘Learner Identities and Feedback Literacy’, while our own Janis Greig and Lesley Gourlay, now of Coventry University, reported on ‘Literacies and Liminality’, and Lesley also spoke about ‘Text, voice [and] silence’. My own contribution was a workshop on ‘Art workshops and Academics’ Identities’ which was enlivened by a Tasmanian colleague who demonstrated how to create a soundscape using everyday items in the classroom. Great fun!

I am grateful for a TF Individual Grant that funded my participation in this conference.

For more information visit the conference website at ewds.strath.ac.uk/aic/Home.aspx

ReferenceBennett, J., (2001). The Enchantment of Modern Life: Attachments, crossings and ethics. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Allison Alexander reports on the International Health Humanities Conference

On 5 August I headed to Nottingham University for the very first International Health Humanities Conference. Held over three days, the conference theme was ‘Madness and Literature’. This conference was quite different from the usual mental health conferences that I attend and present at; there was a much wider range of academics present and for the majority of them ‘literature’ was what had drawn them into the event. As a result some of the papers presented explored mental health issues from a literary criticism perspective. This was quite novel (pun intended) for those of us from a mental health background!

The two keynote speakers – Professors Kay Redfield Jamison and Elaine Showalter, both from the USA, are well respected within their chosen fields and have straddled the worlds of mental health and literature in different but very effective ways. Kay Jamison

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spoke about the impact of writing a memoir (An Unquiet Mind) of her own experience of mental health issues whilst working in the mental health field, and the consequences of doing so for her personally and professionally.

Over the course of the three days we had the opportunity to attend more than twenty papers in addition to keynotes and plenary sessions! A number of papers particularly interested and moved me considerably. The first was a joint presentation from a mental health nurse therapist and a service user whom she had worked with in therapy. They spoke very powerfully about how they had used poetry as a vehicle for communication. This was a very grounding paper that gave a real sense of the therapeutic benefits to be gained from reading and producing creative writing.

Another powerful paper was from a researcher from Finland who had researched the documentary evidence from the first half of the 20th century in the archives of an asylum there. Amongst the medical records of some of the female ‘inmates’ she had discovered letters written by the women that had been confiscated by the authorities. These letters offer an historical record of life in an asylum; a compelling narrative of the individual’s hopes and fears at the time of writing and their efforts to maintain contact with friends and family outside of the asylum, unaware that their words would never reach their intended recipients. In the discussion afterwards participants from the ‘literary world’ were shocked to discover that in some circumstances letters can still be confiscated albeit that such practice is strictly regulated by law. This theme of the use and abuse of power in mental health was shockingly portrayed in the penultimate plenary paper of the conference. The speaker explored several examples of documentary films that had highlighted life in US psychiatric institutions in the 1960s and the federal authorities’ attempts to prevent the broadcast of the work. As the speaker illustrated her presentation with extracts from the documentaries showing brutal treatment being delivered routinely, the impact on the conference audience was clear to see.

My own contribution to the conference was rather grandly titled From Mary Wollstonecraft to Stacey Slater: how stories of mental distress and recovery can be used in learning and teaching mental health students and described how fiction and first person narrative can be used in a range of ways to enhance learning and teaching in our undergraduate mental health nursing degree programme. In my presentation I proposed that drawing on a wide

range of creative genre including fictional soap characters (Stacey Slater), accounts of historical fiction based on real people (Mary Wollstonecraft) and the accounts of people with lived experience can increase engagement with a range of mental health topics particularly from students who might not otherwise participate. After delivering my paper I was approached by a psychiatrist based in Lothian and a medical academic from another Scottish University about the possibility of setting up a Scottish network for people interested in using fiction and narrative in teaching and mental health work. Of course, after three days of being immersed in the world of madness and literature the idea of taking this work further was of immediate attraction, as to whether it actually happens, that remains to be seen.

At times this conference was confusing, perplexing and exhausting but as I reflect on it, it was an interesting and enriching experience. Considering how ‘closed’ the business of madness has been and how people with mental health problems continue to be marginalised it is quite comforting to know that the ‘literary world’ maintains an interest in the mental health world.

ReferenceJamison, Kay R., (1997). An unquiet mind: a memoir of moods and madness. London: Pacador. (Originally published 1995, New York: Knopf.)

Janis Deane reports on a joint Teaching Fellows project Giving students choice in the method of assessment

This is a brief report on a Teaching Fellows grant-funded, group project led by Professor Morag Gray, and including myself, Mark Huxham, Norrie Brown, Courtney McLeod, Karen Thomson and Monica Foster. I gave a paper on behalf of the team at the Edinburgh Napier staff conference on 23 June and repeated at the Assessment: Research and Innovation for Inclusive Practice conference, University of Central Lancashire on 8 July where it was very well received.

Project overviewThe aim of this project was to explore the advantages and disadvantages of allowing all students the choice of assessment method(s) to test their achievement of the module learning outcomes. The objectives were to:

• re-examine the assessment approach taken and adopt an inclusive assessment approach using specified modules spanning SCQF levels

• explore the advantages and disadvantages of

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adopting an inclusive pedagogical approach to assessment within modules.

Context of Inclusive Assessment The project was grounded in the concept of inclusive assessment. This approach considers that assessment should be designed to enhance and encourage learning, helping students to achieve their potential through an inclusive approach to assessment which incorporates explicit acknowledgement of the range of student approaches, aptitudes and learning styles within a diverse student population such as that at Edinburgh Napier University. Inclusive assessment is concerned with equity, regardless of disability, learning style, approach to learning and experience of learning and does not compromise academic standards; rather it increases the range and nature of opportunities for students to demonstrate their acquisition of the learning outcomes in a fair, consistent and equitable manner (Cavanagh & Dickinson 2010). This approach is also congruent with the social, cultural and legislative imperatives pressing the Higher Education sector to play an active role in creating a more inclusive society (Waterfield & West 2006: 19). When reviewing existing assessment practices, the possibilities of both modification and of devising genuinely alternative strategies should be explored; such an approach is highly effective pedagogy not only for students with disabilities but for all students.

Research method The project used mixed methods with a focus on the student experience. It was a University-wide project using a hub and spoke model led by a core research team co-ordinating the efforts of school-based staff. Recruitment was initially through module leaders volunteering in consultation with project staff, and workshops supported this process. Inclusion criteria were that the module needed to run in trimester 2; have learning outcomes appropriate to be assessed by offering choice; have subject group leader approval; external examiner consultation and all quality processes completed. Exclusion criteria usually meant very large modules, issues with accrediting or professional bodies, and/or module content which included practice or work-based modules.

The final sample was seven participating modules, covering each of the three faculties. Levels SCQF 8, 9 and 11 were represented and module numbers ranged from 12 to 59, with a mean of 30. The total number of students in modules under study was in excess of 208.

Two questionnaires were administered to students; one near the start to gather the initial student experience

of making an assessment choice (late January 2010) and the second (April 2010) to explore the student’s perception of the impact of their choice of assessment. This was followed up by focus groups with module staff (May 2010). A follow-up questionnaire with students is planned to discuss module results issued in June 2010 and a quantitative review will be undertaken to elicit if choice in assessment method changed the students’ profile of results.

In the School of Health & Social Sciences, three modules took part in the project and all had two components of assessment weighted 30/70%. All students were required to undertake component one and a choice between two methods was offered for component two. Students had to choose by week 3 and were not permitted to change their minds thereafter. An example of the choices offered for component 2 assessment were:

• poster/oral presentation OR essay

• oral exam OR essay

• unseen exam OR portfolio.

Findings from questionnaire 1 Students clearly tended to avoid the unseen exam and were overwhelmingly positive about being given a choice across all modules. The following themes were drawn out of the findings from questionnaire 1, administered at the start of the modules which reflected the reasons given by students for their choice:

• the congruence with personal learning styles

• the value of novelty and challenge

• the chance to succeed and improve marks

• being valued as an individual.

Findings from questionnaire 2Students, while very positive about having choice, also felt they should experience a wide range of assessments. The low return rate (n=64) for this questionnaire was associated with the timing of its delivery.

Data from staff focus groups also confirmed the perception that students will almost always avoid unseen exams. Staff who participated in the project want to continue offering assessment choice in their modules whilst acknowledging that a view of a variety of assessment types must be taken at programme level. To provide a varied learning and assessment experience seems to militate against roll-out of offering choice in assessment across all modules.

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Other issues for the future consideration include:

• How will the challenge of balancing choice and diversity be achieved?

• Scaleability?

• Comparability of assessment methods?

• Workload issues – extra work for module leaders?

• Formative preparation for two different summative assessment methods.

• Flexibility of systems, module descriptors, quality processes and recording?

• Co-creation of assessment – aspirational?

ReferencesCavanagh, S., Dickinson, Y., (2010). Disability Legislation: Practical Guidance for Academic Staff. Equality Challenge Unit available at www.ecu.ac.uk/publications/disability-legislation-practical-guidance-for-academic-staff-revised (accessed August 2010).

Waterfield, J., West, B., (2006). Inclusive Assessment in Higher Education: A Resource for Change. Plymouth: University of Plymouth. •

Review corner Anne Waugh, School Director of Academic Quality, School of Nursing, Midwifery & Social Care, reviews Using Story in Higher Education and Professional Development by Jennifer Moon (2010) Routledge: Abingdon ISBN 978-0-415-56469-4 200pp £19.99

Many Taylor & Francis and Routledge books www.tandf.co.uk are now available as eBooks from www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk

Using Story in Higher Education and Professional Development reviewed by Anne Waugh

Using Story in Higher Education and Professional Development is written by Jennifer Moon, an independent consultant who delivers storytelling workshops for higher education and professional development and who works at the Centre for Excellence in Media Practice at Bournemouth University. The book is underpinned by extensive pedagogical theory especially within the early chapters, which makes it a good resource for those who wish to explore the underlying pedagogical principles surrounding the uses of ‘story’ in some depth.

In Part I, the vastness of ‘story’ in its broadest sense is considered and a wide range of dimensions are examined including case studies, scenarios and critical incidents – all widely used in HE. The importance of the context, language used, and spoken and unspoken

aspects of story are considered. Many purposes of story are explored such as facilitating learning from experience and reflection, and making an event distinctive by adding meanings and different connotations. Its role in social behaviour including its effect on both the story teller and the listener are discussed in depth, in addition to ways in which the use of story can stimulate learning. By taking a generic approach, the content can be applied not only across a wide range of academic subject disciplines but also to processes used within qualitative research.

The chapters in Part II examine how stories may be learned and understood by individuals and how their meaning can be interpreted in diverse ways. The importance of story in learning is explored from the perspectives of the teller and the listener. The unspoken element of story is discussed together with its role in adding richness to the spoken word and the intended meaning of a story is examined. This section concludes by reminding the reader how story can be used to actively engage students. Indeed, this part provides a useful revision of cognitive learning theory to underpin the role of story in influencing student learning.

In the final part, aptly described as ‘a treasury of ideas’, different uses of story within HE and PD are discussed. Ideas and practical resources are presented in a format which would enable the reader to introduce or review the use of story in their teaching. One chapter explains how graduated scenarios can be used to support reflective learning and writing by clearly showing staged differences between a descriptive account and reflective critical analysis of the same

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incident – a skill that students find notoriously hard to grasp. Another provides insight into the development and use of case studies, scenarios and critical incidents to foster analytical and critical thinking skills. Other chapters explore the use of story in promoting change and organisational improvement, its roles in qualitative research and various uses of fiction in education. The final chapters examine the ‘place of storytelling’ and ‘new ways’ with story in education. The latter includes an overview of digital and interactive storytelling (games and simulation) which are purported to be ‘new ways’; however Moon suggests that these are merely technology-enhanced methods of using story that remain subject to all the other influences and nuances of traditional story media in learning as

discussed in the earlier chapters. The chapters in this part all contain practical tips, resource materials and references to others that would support the reader to introduce new ideas into their practice or, indeed, to stimulate evaluation of current practice by those who already use them.

In summary, Using Story in Higher Education and Professional Development provides a valuable resource for those interested in using ‘story’ to enhance their pedagogical practice by not only providing a theoretical basis from which to consider its use but also a rich repository of ideas and resource materials that could be used to transform ideas into effective student learning experiences. •

Web spotlight Colin Gray, Academic Development Adviser, Professional Development, keeps us up to date with the Edinburgh Napier Education Exchange

The Edinburgh Napier Education Exchange is a new website aimed at facilitating better communication and collaboration among colleagues across the university in order to promote team projects, research and the sharing of good practice in teaching and learning. The site is based around a social networking principle, along the lines of Facebook, and is built on the commonly used educational platform, ELGG. All the features you’d expect from a social networking site are there, including discussion forums, personal profiles, file sharing, groups and blogging, and each of these features can help you to communicate with colleagues who share your teaching and learning and your research interests.

The site, conceived and developed by Professional Development, was originated from an idea that it would be useful to have an area where participants in our workshops could continue to develop partnerships that formed naturally during the learning process. Colleagues from different faculties might discover a common interest in teaching with video, for example, but that association might not continue, simply due to the disparate nature of our campuses. An online forum was the solution – somewhere where resources could be shared, results displayed and ideas debated without the hassles of travelling across town to do so.

The site is now in use by many colleagues and is open to anyone who thinks they can find a use for it. Please, go ahead and sign up at www.napiereducationexchange.com and contribute to the fledgling discussions. The site is always evolving, with the possibility of a tie-in with the newly developed LTA resource bank thereby enhancing what is already proving to be a valuable staff resource. •